very well or very good

[Juan Antonio]

When you want to say to your son that he has done very well, do you use either "very good" or "very well"?
I mean: Your son is playing football very well. You go with him and say "very...."
Thank you very much

 

[philadelphia]

On one hand: You play very well. Well refers to the verb 'play'

On the other: You are very good at English. Good refers to the pronoun 'you'

And in your case, if you come and want to say him something, it depends on whether you are referring to him (very good) or what he has done ([you have done] very well).

Not a teacher at all

 

[Juan Antonio]

Maybe I have not explained very well.
Your son is playing really well.
Can I say to him this simple statement: "Hey Peter, very well"?
Thanks in advance

 

[philadelphia]

Maybe I have not explained very well.
Your son is playing really well.
Can I say to him this simple statement: "Hey Peter, very well"?
Thanks in advance

Yes, you can.

In fact, you can say either very well or very good. It merely depends on what you are referring to.

 

[Kazuki]

I'd prefer..

"very good" This is what I hear most.

regards,
not a teacher

 

[Juan Antonio]

Thank you very much for your answers.
I need the response of an English-native speaker.
If I cannot say "very well". Why?

 

[Kazuki]

It's not that you can't use 'very well' but just these two words, the phrase carries another meaning.

When you say "very well", it means you agree to accept a suggestion or agree with a fact/idea.

For instance,

A: Mr. Brown is going to replace you after you leave.
B. Very well. If that's the case, I'm relieved as he's a good worker.

When you say 'very good' it means you're giving someone a compliment for what they have done.

you can also use 'well done or well played' in your case.

Hope this helps
cheers

 

[Clark]

When you want to say to your son that he has done very well, do you use either "very good" or "very well"?

- Well done, son.

I mean: Your son is playing football very well. You go with him and say "very...."

- You play football very well.
or: You are a very good football player.

...

 

[Barb_D]

I'd like to echo was what just said in the last two posts.

Very good job! Great job!
Very well done!
You did very well!
Your played very well!
You were great out there!

Those are expected and natural.

If someone came up to me and said "Very well" I'd wonder what they were (reluctantly) agreeing to. However, "Very good!" all on its own is a bit odd too.

 

[Kazuki]

I'd like to echo was what just said in the last two posts.

Very good job! Great job!
Very well done!
You did very well!
You played very well!
You were great out there!

Those are expected and natural.

If someone came up to me and said "Very well" I'd wonder what they were (reluctantly) agreeing to. However, "Very good!" all on its own is a bit odd too.

Hear!hear! except "Very good!" all on its own is a bit odd too

A student might hear 'very good' from his teacher when he answers a question correctly.;-)

 

[Juan Antonio]

That is what I wanted to know.
If a student answer a question correctly. Can the teacher say to him "very well".
Please, a native-English speaker.
We are about to know what I asked at the beginning.

 

[Barb_D]

No, if you ask a question and he answers it correctly, do NOT say "Very well."

You can say:
Good!
Very good!
Well done!
Good answer.



(I agree that "Very good" is fine by itself if it's an immediate response like this. But if, for example, I came off the field after playing a game of some sort, and someone came up and say "very good!" it would be odd. This last situation is what the original question was about: His son played well in a game. Can he go up and say "very well." No. But in that situation "Very good" is a bit odd too. In contrast, the immediate sequence of teacher's question - student's response - teacher's praise CAN use "very good.")